GRAFTON (WVDN) – A local artist’s work is going on the road.

Art by Misty Murray-Walkup will be featured in August at Gallery 62 West in Grafton. An opening reception will be held during Grafton’s First Friday activities on Aug. 5 from 6-8 p.m.

Walkup is a full-time working artist and illustrator with over 30 years of experience. Although she prefers using oils and acrylics, she enjoys dabbling in several other mediums, always adding to her abilities along the way. As an entirely self-taught artist, she has developed and honed her unique painting style that has gained her respect and recognition in the art world.

She enjoys painting many subjects, but she has a strong focus on animals, both wild and domestic. She enjoys the unique challenge that painting wildlife in realism presents.

“I love painting in realism, and wildlife is by far my favorite subject. I bring the zoo inside my head to life on canvas with my brush and paint,” says Murray-Walkup.

She finds that inspiration to paint West Virginia wildlife comes easily, because it’s everywhere in our state.

Murray-Walkup works from a full palette – any color found in nature can be found in her art. She uses them all to try to re-create what she sees as realistically as possible.

Murray-Walkup has received numerous awards for her paintings, which have been juried into art shows throughout the United States. Additionally, her artwork can be found in private and public collections worldwide

Her book, “The Wildlife Art of Misty Murray-Walkup” is a collection of 22 paintings in book form and was recently selected for inclusion into the United States Library of Congress.

Murray-Walkup is a juried member of Tamarack in Beckley. Her artwork has been chosen by the West Viriginia Division of Natural Resources (WVDNR) for several of their yearly calendars. Her work appeared in the 2019 calendar for the month of October. Two of her paintings were selected for the 2020 calendar for the months of January and October.

In 2021, Murray-Walkup’s painting of a bob cat was featured on the cover of the calendar as well as for the month of September, and her painting of wild turkeys was used for the month of March. Most recently, two of her paintings were selected for the 2022 edition of the West Virginia State Wildlife Calendar

Her black bear painting was selected by the WVDNR as the cover for the 2023 state wildlife calendar, and her otter painting was also selected to appear in the interior of the calendar.

She was also a featured artist for the Foundation for Appalachian Advancement.

Murray-Walkup was asked to create the 2021 official State Fair of West Virginia poster/print of the year and was the first hidden image poster ever painted for the state fair.

Murray-Walkup’s artwork has been used in numerous books, including “Appalachian Folklore-Omens, Signs and Superstitions” cover and interior, as well as William McClung’s “Appalachian Frontiersman” cover.

Other publications where her art may be found include “The Wildlife Art of Misty Murray-Walkup” cover and interior. “Were Wolf Tales” cover and interior, “Ghosts of Greenbrier County” front and back covers and “Haunted Lewisburg, West Virginia” front and back.

Being a self-taught artist, Murray-Walkup shares this advice with anyone who is learning to paint or to improve their work – “Go paint! Truly, practice does makes perfect so, go paint, and paint some more!”

When she is not painting, Murray-Walkup enjoys spending time with her husband of 30 years, James Walkup, and their four children.

Many of her art works will be for sale at the Grafton gallery.

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